Luke 18:15-17 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

Friday, September 23, 2011

The New Birth in Jesus Christ is wonderful. There are immediate changes and benefits.Then there are changes that happen gradually.

In the new birth, we instantly become a new creation in Jesus Christ. We are, by the Holy Spirit, baptized into the body of Christ. (1 Cor 12:13)

We enter into the abundant life given us by Jesus Christ. (John 10:10)

Jesus is now our good and great Shepherd leading us beside the still waters, into green pastures and into the paths of right standing with God. We immediately are led by the Holy Spirit in our daily life. (Rom 8:14)

We have the Holy Spirit guiding us into all truth. (John 16:13)

We immediately become a child of God, with all the rights that go with it. (Gal 3:26)

We immediately have right standing with God through Jesus Christ. (Rom 5:17-18)

We immediately have rest for our souls. (Matt 11:28-30)

We immediately have Jesus Christ interceding for us. (Heb 7:25)

We immediately are freed from the control of the powers of darkness and now are in God's kingdom where there is joy, life and liberty. (Col 1:13)

We immediately have Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world living inside of us. We become lights in the midst of darkness. (Matt 5:14)

We immediately have the right to use the Name of Jesus in prayer. (John 16:23-24)

We immediately can use the Name of Jesus to resist the devil and command him to leave our thoughts, lives and household. (James 4:7)

We immediately have the right to speak to circumstances in the Name of Jesus and command them to come into line with the Word of God. We can speak to storms in our life and In the Name of Jesus, say 'Peace be Still.' (Mark 4:39-40)

We immediately enjoy the benefits of being a child of God. (Ps 103:3-5)

We can ask God to forgive us and He does through Jesus Christ. (I Jhn 1:9)

We can receive healing for our soul and body though Jesus Christ. (1Pet 2:24)

We can walk in God's divine protection. We can have the angels of God watching over us and protecting us day and night: (Ps 34:7)

We have goodness and mercy following us. (Ps 23:6)

The same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead is inside of us, quickening our mortal bodies! (Rom 8:11)

The New Birth in Jesus Christ is wonderful. There are immediate changes and benefits.Then there are changes that happen gradually.

In the new birth, we instantly become a new creation in Jesus Christ. We are, by the Holy Spirit, baptized into the body of Christ. (1 Cor 12:13)

We enter into the abundant life given us by Jesus Christ. (John 10:10)

Jesus is now our good and great Shepherd leading us beside the still waters, into green pastures and into the paths of right standing with God. We immediately are led by the Holy Spirit in our daily life. (Rom 8:14)

We have the Holy Spirit guiding us into all truth. (John 16:13)

We immediately become a child of God, with all the rights that go with it. (Gal 3:26)

We immediately have right standing with God through Jesus Christ. (Rom 5:17-18)

We immediately have rest for our souls. (Matt 11:28-30)

We immediately have Jesus Christ interceding for us. (Heb 7:25)

We immediately are freed from the control of the powers of darkness and now are in God's kingdom where there is joy, life and liberty. (Col 1:13)

We immediately have Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world living inside of us. We become lights in the midst of darkness. (Matt 5:14)

We immediately have the right to use the Name of Jesus in prayer. (John 16:23-24)

We immediately can use the Name of Jesus to resist the devil and command him to leave our thoughts, lives and household. (James 4:7)

We immediately have the right to speak to circumstances in the Name of Jesus and command them to come into line with the Word of God. We can speak to storms in our life and In the Name of Jesus, say 'Peace be Still.' (Mark 4:39-40)

We immediately enjoy the benefits of being a child of God. (Ps 103:3-5)

We can ask God to forgive us and He does through Jesus Christ. (I Jhn 1:9)

We can receive healing for our soul and body though Jesus Christ. (1Pet 2:24)

We can walk in God's divine protection. We can have the angels of God watching over us and protecting us day and night: (Ps 34:7)

We have goodness and mercy following us. (Ps 23:6)

The same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead is inside of us, quickening our mortal bodies! (Rom 8:11)

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

THE GOSPEL

The Lord Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection is God's only provision for sinners to be forgiven, redeemed and justified. Jesus Christ satisfied the righteous justice of God by paying the eternal punishment for sin when he died as man's substitute.

Any person who repents and receives Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior by grace through faith, no longer trusting in anyone or anything else for salvation, becomes a child of God and receives the gift of eternal life

The Bible says that mankind has a problem, and that problem is called sin. Sin is any action or attitude that falls short of God's perfect standard. Every one of us has the problem of sin (Romans 3:23). And the Bible teaches us that there is a consequence to sin - sin separates us from a holy God (Habakkuk 1:13). In fact, the Bible tells us that end result of sin is death (Romans 6:23) and that there is nothing that we ourselves can do to solve the problem of sin.

The Bible says that there is a solution to the problem of sin, and that solution is the person of Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23). The Bible tells us that God loved us so much that he sent Jesus, His only Son, to die in our place (John 3:16). Jesus paid the penalty of your sin so that you would not have to be forever separated from God (I John 4:10). The Bible also tells us that Jesus is the only solution for our sin problem (John 14:6).

The Bible demands a decision. It is not enough to just know about Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for you. You must choose to put your trust in Christ, to receive this free gift of salvation that God offers (John 1:12).

All of us have the problem of sin. There is only one solution to the problem - the person of Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for us. Every one of us must decide...

Dt. 6:4-5. However, before sin entered the world man's purpose was to serve God and glorify Him.

Matt. 22:34-40. Therefore, man is now living in an abnormal condition.

Rom. 3:10, 5:6-9; Lk. 5:31,32 There is none righteous, no not one!

Rom. 3:23. Everyone, without exception, is a sinner.

Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Is. 64:6-7. God views our good deeds as "filthy rags."

Eph. 2:8-9. Good works cannot save us.

3. THE LAW

Ex. 20:1-20. The Ten Commandments.

Mt. 22:34-40. If we disobey the 1st & 2nd greatest commandments we have broken all of the Bible’s laws.

Ja. 2:10-11. If we break one commandment we’ve broken them all.

Rom. 3:20; Gal. 3:24. The purpose of the Ten Commandments is to reveal sin in us and disclose our inability in keeping the law’s demands. This creates an attitude of desperation in sinners to be delivered from the guilt and penalty of the law. Christ alone is the sinners hope.

4. THE VANITY OF LIFE

Heb. 9:27. Three things are common to all: Life, Death, & Judgment.

2 Pet. 3:8; Ja. 4:13-14. Life Is relatively short: Eccl. 12:8,13,14,

Life is vain: Solomon, the wisest man who lived, had everything this world has to offer yet he judged this life as totally vain and futile (2 Tim. 3:7).

Lk. 12:16-21. Have right priorities with God’s help.

Eccl. 5:15; 1 Tim. 6:7; Lk. 9:24. Live for Jesus Christ and not the world.

5. HELL & JUDGEMENT

Rev. 20:11-15. The great white throne judgment.

Matt. 25:41-46. Everlasting fire and punishment for the unsaved.

Heb. 9:27. After this life comes judgment.

Lk. 16:19-31. Hell is a place of unceasing pain and torment with no escape.

6. THE NEW BIRTH

Jn. 3:1-7. Jesus teaches that the "new birth" is necessary for salvation.

Jn. 1:13.

John 1:13 which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

2 Cor. 5:17. To be born again means that our old life is replaced by a new one.

Eph. 4:21-24; Col. 3:9-10. When a person becomes "born again" the Bible describes him as a "new person," who brings forth new fruit.

Gal. 6:15. All that matters is that we become a "new creation."

7. GRACE

Eph. 2:8,9. Grace is a free gift, it is unmerited favor.

Acts 15:11. We are saved by the grace of Christ.

Rom. 4:3-5. Salvation is by grace through faith and not by the deeds of the law.

Tit. 3:5-7; Rom.3:24. We are "Justified" freely by His grace.

8. REPENTANCE

Lk. 13:3. Unless we repent, we will all perish.

Acts 3:19. We must repent and be converted.

Matt. 4:17. Jesus said, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand

Acts 26:20. We must repent and bring forth fruits worthy of repentance.

I Jn. 1:9. If we confess our sins He will forgive us our sins.

Prov. 28:13. He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confess and forsakes them will have mercy.

Ps. 66:18. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.

9. FAITH

Heb. 11:6. Without faith it is impossible to please God.

Jn. 20:24-29. Blessed are they who do not see yet believe.

Jn. 3:16-19. Whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal fife.

Eph. 2:8. We are saved by grace "through faith."

Gal. 3:23-26. We are saved through faith in Christ and not by keeping the law.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Live for Jesus

God wants you to make it to heaven. God will help you and empower you to live right. At the same time, we get to choose the right things in life. We get to turn away from wrong things. We get to overcome temptations. We get to say yes to God and no to temptations. We can say, 'No, in the Name of Jesus!' to things that would try to distract us from living for God.Below are Bible verses to help you. There are many good Bible aids found in Christian bookstores. Find a Bible believing local church or body of believers that you can be a part of.

Matt 7:13-14 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. "Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Titus 2:12-14 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.Gods wants us to shun or turn away from all evil. We want to live as close to God as possible. We want to live as far away from the devil and ungodliness as possible. God gives us grace to overcome sin through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Ps 1:1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

There is a blessing just for staying away from ungodliness, away from sinful places and from being scornful.

1 Cor 15:33 Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits."

2 Cor 13:7 Now I pray to God that you do no evil, not that we should appear approved, but that you should do what is honorable, though we may seem disqualified.

1Thes 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.

God want us to end up in heaven. However, for those who choose against God and receiving His Son, Jesus Christ, there is a place called hell. There is no water in hell!

Luke 16:23-25 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

Matt 13:41-42 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Rev 21:8 "But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."

Sadly, there are people who have been offended by the church or by Christians. Each person must one day stand before God and answer for their words and actions unless they have been forgiven and covered by the Blood of Jesus Christ. Don't let a past hurt stop you from being in heaven. Look past people and look to Jesus, who alone can save us and give us eternal life!

Name Above All NamesJesus taught us to pray to the Heavenly Father, In His Name.
John 14:13-14 13 "And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

John 15:16 "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.

John 16:23-24 23 "And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. 24 "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.We read in the Book of Acts, the importance of speaking the Name of Jesus:
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 3:6 Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk."
Acts 4:10 "let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. Even the people who didn’t believe, realized the importance of the Name of Jesus. They tried to stop the disciples from speaking in it:
Acts 4:18-20 18 And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. 20 "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."There is power in the Name of Jesus to cast out demons:
Acts 16:18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out that very hour.There is power in the Name of Jesus to heal the sick:
Acts 3:6-8 6 Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." 7 And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. 8 So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them-- walking, leaping, and praising God.
Acts 3:16 "And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.Foremost, we have to be a born again child of God. We must have received Jesus Christ into our heart as Lord and Savior.The book of Acts gives an example of men who tried to use the Name of Jesus but were not saved:
Acts 19:13-17 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches." 14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. 15 And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" 16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.To become a Christian we do the following:
Rom 10:9-10 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.After we are saved by receiving Jesus Christ, we should be baptized to show the world we are now a Christian.
Acts 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. We must be willing to follow our Lord Jesus Christ completely:
Acts 15:26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Rev 12:11 "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Just as Paul in last verse in the book of Acts taught about the Lord Jesus Christ with confidence, we too are tell others about our Lord Jesus Christ!
Acts 28:31 preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him.
Matt 28:19-20 19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.All Bible references are in the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.

The election of any man or woman is an election within the sphere of the elect community of God, namely the body of Christ. Election is established and marked out in the election of Jesus Christ. Christ is the true Elect. The election that Paul addresses in his epistles is not in respect to particular individuals—unconditionally elected—but rather, the election is in respect to the body of Christ (ekklhsia). This union with Christ comes about through faith in Jesus. Paul, in his second letter to the Thessalonians, expresses forcefully the method God employs to incorporate one into the Elect of God:

But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be savedthrough the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).

God chose the Thessalonians to be saved through “the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth,” God did not select them separate and apart from these two truths. Once more, the words of Paul are to the point in the first chapter of Ephesians: “you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13). Were they unconditionally elected without respect to the gospel of God? No! Paul emphasizes that they were included when they believed, not before. In conclusion, consider the following Scriptures that capture the concept that election is only in the body of Christ:

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will (Ephesians 1:4-5).

But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant (Colossians 1:22-23).

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless (Ephesians 5:25-27).

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ (Ephesians 1:7-9).

From the above Scriptures, one observes that the election is corporate and comprehends individuals only in association with the Elect body, that is to say, the Body of Christ. Perhaps, one more Scripture is appropriate to summarize this message on “Election of Men is Comprehended Only In Christ.” Listen to John as he calls attention to life and where it is to be found:

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life (1 John 5:11-12).